Sights & Sounds – May 8

Pittsburgh Civic Orchestra

Pittsburgh Civic Orchestra’s season finale takes place May 18 at the Upper St. Clair Theater, 1825 McLaughlin Run Road. The season of “Tell Me A Story” concludes with tales from Hungary, Germany, Austria and a Czech’s interpretation of “the New World.”

The PCO will present Antonin Dvorak’s “Symphony No. 9, From The New World.” Dvorak composed the piece in 1893, and it is one of the most popular pieces of music in the romantic repertoire. In addition, the PCO is proud to feature its own Alicia Whitney, bassoon, who will play the soulful “Andante e Rondo Ungarese, Op. 35” by the German Carl Maria von Weber. The orchestra will also perform “Serenade” by the Hungarian composer Gyula Beliczay along with the delightful “Wine, Women, and Song, Op. 333” by the Austrian waltz king, Johann Strauss.

Tickets are $5-$15 and can be purchased at the door. Children under 12 are free. For more information, call 412-279-4030 or visit www.pittsburghcivicorchestra.org.

The Price is Right Live

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and Steve Litman present The Price is Right Live! at the Benedum Center, 7:30 p.m. May 9. The hit interactive stage show gives contestants pulled right from the audience the chance to “Come On Down” to win appliances, vacations and new cars by playing classic games from television’s longest running and most popular game show. From Plinko to Cliffhangers to the Big Wheel, and even the fabulous Showcase, all the favorite games are played just like the TV show.

Tickets are $47.50-$100 and can be purchased by calling 412-456-6666 or visiting www.trustarts.org.

Jazz and klezmer

3rd Street Gallery, Carnegie, will present Furious Gypsy Jazz & Soulful Klezmer at 3 p.m. May 19. Featured will be Susanne Ortner-Roberts (Germany) on clarinet, John Marcinizyn (USA) on guitar, and Vladimir Mollov (Bulgaria) on accordion. Admission is $15 at the door.

Mom’s Nite Out

South Hills Village Mall will hold a Mom’s Nite Out May 9, featuring a night of pampering, fun, prizes and fashion.

This free event is a guilt-free excuse for moms to take the night off to relax and enjoy a celebration of motherhood.

At 5:30 p.m. the night kicks off with a riotous party – lots of samples and promotions from leading retailers and partners including a swag bag while supplies last.

At 6:30 p.m., three lucky winners will be chosen to compete in “Shopped!” (the mall’s version of “Chopped!”). The contestants will get the chance to go shopping in the mall with a $500 Simon gift card. While contestants are shopping, the party will continue with information on the latest trends, and prizes will be given out all night.

When the stylistas return from their one-hour shop, they’ll face the panel of judges. One grand-prize winner will receive a grand prize. Runners up will receive gift certificates for dinner and show tickets. All of the contestants get to keep their outfits.

“Dani Girl”

Told from a child’s perspective, “Dani Girl,” running May 9-12 at STAGE 62 at the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall in Carnegie, is the inspiring and humorous story of a young girl’s battle with a life-threatening disease. Far from sitting back and accepting her condition, Dani transforms her struggle into a fantastical adventure. The provocative musical explores the universal themes of life in the face of death, hope in the face of despair, and the indomitable power of imagination, and is a collaboration between Michael Kooman, composer, and Christopher Dimond, lyricist and librettist, which began at Carnegie Mellon University seven years ago. Tickets are $15-$18 and can be purchased by calling 412-429-6262 or online at www.stage62.com.

Mother’s Day concert

Peters Yarrow of the ’60s folk group “Peter, Paul and Mary” will perform in a Mother’s Day Concert at 7 p.m. May 12 at East Liberty Presbyterian Church, in East Liberty. Hope Academy of Music and the Arts teen theater company will open the concert.

Admission is pay-what-you-can. Proceeds will support Hope Academy’s music scholarship.

For more information, call 412-708-3443.

Auditions

The Heritage Players, Bethel Park, will hold a murder-mystery dinner show fundraiser “Till Death Do Us Part” at 7 p.m. May 18 and 2 p.m. May 19 at the Castle Shannon Municipal Building. Ticket price of $25 includes show and dinner catered by Mama Lucia’s. Gift basket donations for the raffle are welcome. Call 412-254-4633 or reserve online by May 11 at www.heritageplayers.org.

‘Without Ruth’

Off The Wall Productions will present “Without Ruth,” a world premiere play by Virginia Wall Gruenert, through May 18 at Off The Wall Theater in Carnegie. While it’s true that mothers and daughters often have contentious relationships that will keep therapists in business for decades to come, there is no denying the deep bond that exists between them. Based on the life of Ruth Haston, a long-time resident of Pittsburgh’s Hill District and inspired by the diaries of her daughter, “Without Ruth” deals with the end-of-life decisions that must be made by dutiful daughters, as well as the discord, conciliation, warfare and ultimate acceptance between strong, independent women bound by love and family.

Performances are 8 p.m. May 9-11, 16-18 and 3 p.m. May 12. For tickets, call 1-877-71-TICKETS or visit www.showclix.com.

Movie premiere

Competitive marble shooting ... it is alive and well, and local film makers, Justin A. Nixon and Jordan M. Serra, with a host of other collaborators, will premiere their documentary, “Mibsters: A Marble Story,” at 2 p.m. May 18 at the Senator John Heinz History Center, 1212 Smallman Street, Strip District.

“Mibsters: A Marble Story” follows three Pittsburgh boys on their quest to become champions of the National Marble Tournament. Through encouragement and practice, struggle becomes triumph. The documentary premier is included as part of admission to the Heinz History Center. Seating is limited. Get a sneak peek at www.Mibsters.com.

Waterworks

Third Street Gallery, Carnegie, will present “Waterworks,” a Pittsburgh Watercolor Society membership show, through May 25. For more information, call 412-276-5233 or visit www.pittsburghwatercolorsociety.com.

‘Meet Me Under The Clock’ Day

Macy’s will honor a century’s worth of memories under the Kaufmann’s Clock at Macy’s Downtown Pittsburgh with a two-day anniversary celebration.

For 100 years, Pittsburgh families, friends and lovers have used the Kaufmann’s Clock as a landmark to rendezvous downtown before venturing into the department store,

On May 17, Meet Me Under The Clock Day’s activities include:

• At 9:45 a.m., Meet Mr. McFeely of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” under the clock as he reads the city proclamation, declaring May 17, 2013, as “Meet Me Under The Clock” Day. View a collage of memories, stories, photos and memorabilia of Kaufmann’s famous clock in the store windows. Be one of the first 100 customers in the doors on Fifth Avenue near Smithfield Street and receive a $10 Macy’s gift card. One customer will receive a $100 Macy’s gift card.

• At 10 a.m., Macy’s will open and customers will enjoy in-store activities and have an opportunity to peruse the special Clock Shop, purchase special limited-edition clock-inspired merchandise including mugs, ornaments and more with art designed by local artists Wendell August and Linda Barnicott.

On May 18, a Meet Me Under the Clock Family Fun Day Celebration will take place at the Downtown store beginning at 10 a.m.

Meet friends for a bite to eat as prices are rolled back to the olden days on some customer favorites: the Thumbprint Cookie at the Arcade Bakery and the Tea Plate at the Tic Toc Restaurant.

In conjunction with the National Cartoonists Society Conference, The ToonSeum will host the first Pittsburgh Comic Arts Festival from noon-5 p.m. May 26.

The festival will feature autograph and sketch sessions with over 60 of the nation’s top comic artist and cartoonists, including Partrick McDonnell of Mutts, Lynn Johnston of For Better or Worse, Tom Richmond of MAD Magazine, Brian Walker of Beetle Bailey, Dan Piraro of Bizarro.

The 900 Block of Liberty Avenue downtown will become a living funny pages block party with visits from Betty Boop, Popeye, Olive Oyl, Dennis the Menace and the Care Bears. Fun vendors, art activities, chalk artists and caricaturists will round out the festivities.

Several ticketed panel discussions and lectures will be taking place at Bricolage Theater featuring a panel of women cartoonists presented by Carlow University. The panel will include Cathy Guisewite, Lynn Johnston, Terri Liebenson and Hillary Price.

The ToonSeum will host the first-ever exhibition of Reuben Award winners, featuring a who’s who of comics and cartooning spanning more than 60 years and rarely seen original art.

At the August Wilson Center, there will be original art from the classic animated series Fat Albert on display in their gallery.

Admission to the street festival is free. A $5 admission gets access to exhibitions at the ToonSeum and artists signing booths.

Books and prints for signings will be available for purchase with all proceeds benefiting the NCS/ToonSeum Fund for Youth Programs.

Panel discussion ticket price is $20.

On Thursday night, there will be Special VIP tickets available including a sneak peek of the exhibit, reserved seating to all panels, and private meet and greet with artists, which are available for $150.

For more information, visit pghcomicartsfest.com

American opera

Opera Theater of Pittsburgh will perform “Shining Brow” June 7 and 8, the weekend of Frank Lloyd Wright’s 146th birthday. The American opera, with music by Daron Hagen and libretto by Paul Muldoon, will be performed on Fallingwater’s terraces.

Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. with a reception starting at 6:30. A chartered bus will be available for the Saturday performance.

For details, call 412-326-9687.

Meadows entertainment

The Meadows Racetrack & Casino announces its entertainment line-up for May. All concerts are free admission.